Starbucks rolls out ‘unity’ cup ahead of Election Day

This year, people are no less outraged by the cup design. Starbucks wouldn’t confirm whether the green cups are part of the chain’s holiday plans, or if it would also use red cups. The absence of holiday symbols led one customer to write a viral Facebook post criticizing the move as a war on Christmas.

The cup, which is not specifically for Christmas, is green with a white circle and shows a bunch of people all standing together in good spirits.

Created by artist Shogo Ota, the artwork on the green cups is meant to symbolise shared human connection.

Ahead of the 2016 presidential election, Starbucks is rolling out a new green cup meant to be a symbol of unity during this divisive time.

November 1 also sees the return of Starbucks holiday season favorites like the Chestnut Praline Latte, Caramel Brulée Latte, and Peppermint Mocha. Reports are circulating that Starbucks will have traditional red holiday cups later in the year, but spokespeople with the company have not confirmed those rumors.

This isn’t the first time Starbucks has been in hot water over their cups. Here’s what people on Twitter are saying about the “unity” green cups.

One problem is that people assumed the green cups were meant to be the official holiday cups spanning the next two months-in place of the traditional red cups, which were already under fire a year ago for not being Christmassy enough.

HollywoodLifers, what do you think of the Starbucks rumors?

Thing is, these may not be the company’s intended holiday cups.

The story began to unfold on Tuesday, when Starbucks issued a seemingly innocuous press release announcing the debut of a new cup that “celebrates community”.

A Reddit user named DasUberSquid spilled the beans about the coffee chain’s holiday cup design, posting a photo with the caption, “I peeked”. We’ll just have to wait until November 10 to see what really happens.